


unplanned.

by glowworm888



Category: The Loud House (Cartoon)
Genre: Family Bonding, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Teen Pregnancy, Ten Years Later
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:26:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23306023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/glowworm888/pseuds/glowworm888
Summary: Lola Loud could've never imagined this happening to her. But now that it has, she has a lot of responsibilities to take on. Luckily, her twin sister is more than willing to help her through this.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

The Loud family sat at the dining table, poking around what was left of their dinners as they engaged in typical evening conversations. It wasn't quite as overwhelming as it once had been. In the ten years since Lori had moved away for college, the younger Louds grew up as they watched their older siblings leave one by one. Only the youngest five still lived at 1216 Franklin Avenue. 

With only the seven of them, family meals seemed incredibly quiet compared to what they had once been. However, tonight it had been particularly quiet, and it was no mystery why. The loudest of the Louds, Lola, was not present at the table. It wasn't uncommon for one or more of the family to be missing at this time of day. Lucy had a part-time job, the twins had various activities and hobbies, Lisa had online college courses, and Lily had volleyball practice. Lola's absence was not thought of as odd until Lisa encountered her in the hallway after dinner. It had been assumed Lola was out with friends or had a speech and debate meeting to attend. Instead, she had been coming out of the bathroom in a pair of sweats and a baggy fleece jacket that she must've taken from Lana. Even more curiously, her face had been wiped clean of any makeup, which she usually wouldn't remove until the end of the day. Lisa frowned as her older sister made the silent journey from the bathroom to her bedroom. With only the five girls in the house, they each had their own bedroom. Lola had claimed Luna and Luan's bedroom after the former had moved away almost six years ago. 

Having no reason to consider Lola's behavior odd, she let it be. She was just about to close herself into her room (which had once been Lori and Leni's) when she heard Lana coming up the stairs. 

"Hey Lis, do you know when Lola's supposed to get home? We're supposed to work on our pre-calc homework tonight" 

Lisa frowned again and glanced towards Lola's closed bedroom door. 

"Actually, she's already home" 

Lana squinted at Lisa, then at Lola's door. Lisa shrugged at her older sister, then slipped into her own bedroom. Though it was strange that Lola hadn't joined her family for dinner, it wasn't unthinkable that she had a reason for not being there. She decided not to dwell on it, leaving Lana in the hallway outside Lola's bedroom. 

"Hey Lo, you missed dinner" she said. 

When she went unanswered, she tapped gently on the door. 

"Lola?" 

It was another few seconds before the door clicked quietly and swung inwards. Lola was on the other side in an outfit she wouldn't be caught dead in outside of her house. Lana looked her up and down for a moment, considered making a joke about it, but when her eyes caught sight of Lola's expression she thought better of it. Her eyes were puffy and held soft purple crescents beneath them. Immediately, Lana could tell she had been crying. 

"What's the matter?" She asked softly, and Lola's shoulders sunk even lower. 

"Come in" she whispered, and opened the door wide enough to let her sister in. 

Lana slipped off her boots and left them in the hall. They had dried mud on them, and though Lola didn't mention it, Lana didn't want to add to her stress. 

The younger twin sat down on her bed and pulled a sleeping Charles into her lap. The old dog grumbled happily, and continued to snooze as Lola held him close to her body. Lana took a seat in the little desk chair on the other side of the room. It was shaped and painted like a throne. Their father (with help from Lana) had built it for Lola as a Christmas gift a few years before. She swiveled around to face Lola, and leaned forward. Her heart began to thump in concern. It wasn't uncommon for Lola to get moody or upset, especially during her "time of the month", but seeing her like this was a rarity. 

"Talk to me, Lola" she pleaded when Lola wasn't starting the conversation. 

The two twins had always been vastly different from each other, but in their sixteen years they had never drifted apart. Lana loved all her siblings equally, but she had always been inseparable from Lola. She was her best friend and confidant, so seeing her looking so distressed immediately made Lana imagine a dozen worst-case scenarios. 

Lola fiddled with Charles' ear, refusing to make eye contact with her sister. Her mouth opened just slightly, as if she were about to start talking, but she then closed it again, pressing her lips into a pathetic frown. 

"You're scaring me, Sis. Tell me what's up" Lana coaxed. 

Lola looked up and towards Lana. 

"I think I might be pregnant" 

Lana's eyes shot open and she sat up straight. 

"What? You've gotta be messing with me!" She exclaimed in shock, and immediately regretted it when she saw Lola bend over and bury her face in Charles' fur. She got up to sit next to her sister and laid a calloused hand on her back. 

"I'm not messing with you" Lola said quietly, muffled by Charles. 

Lana reached her arm around Lola and pulled her into a clumsy side hug.

"It's okay, Lols. I'm happy for you" she said, trying to make it sound like something worth celebrating. And maybe on some level it was, but there was no convincing Lola of that. Lana had trouble believing it herself. 

"Don't be," she sobbed, leaning into her sister's hug, "this is one of the worst things that could've happened to me"

Lana let her cry for a few minutes, waiting for her hiccupy sobs to calm down before continuing talking to her. 

"Are you one hundred percent sure?" she asked when Lola's crying had turned into a gentle weeping. 

Lola shrugged softly. 

"I'm like three weeks late for my period and I took a test after school" she whimpered. 

"Maybe you should take another just to be sure. I can get Lucy to drive us to the drug store" she offered. 

Though the twins were old enough to drive, neither one of them had passed their driving test. Other than their parents, Lucy was the sole driver of the Loud family. 

"I don't want to have to tell Lucy yet" Lola protested. 

"We don't have to tell her what we're buying. She probably won't even ask" 

Lola reluctantly agreed, and rubbed her face with a cleansing wipe while Lana found Lucy. The three sisters loaded into Vanzilla and drove away to the nearest drugstore. As expected, Lucy didn't ask the twins what they needed from the store at seven at night, though she did ask Lola if she was alright. 

Lucy never grew out of the gothic lifestyle, but she was a rather caring sister. It had been almost three years since Lincoln had moved out, and she had taken the role of the oldest effortlessly. She didn't mind shuttling her younger sisters around in the van, and she let them vent to her when needed. It was clear she was concerned about Lola's strange behavior that evening, but she didn't pry when Lola said she was just having a bad day. 

The ride back from the store was quiet except for the staticky hum of the radio. Lola's lip quivered and Lana gripped her hand comfortingly. When Lucy pulled into the driveway, the twins immediately darted into the house and upstairs into Lola's room. Lana pulled the pregnancy test kit out of the plastic bag and handed it to Lola. 

For a few minutes, Lana sat alone on Lola's bed, waiting for her to return from the bathroom. Her heart was fluttering. If Lola was right about her being pregnant, it would change her entire life. Lana had no idea who the father was, and didn't want to ask until Lola was in a better frame of mind. Then there was the matter of telling her family. There was so much to think about that it made Lana dizzy just trying to weigh it all. But she couldn't break. Not when her sister needed her to be the strong one. 

Lola returned with the pregnancy test in her hand. She laid out a tissue on her desk and set it down. She hovered above the test, waiting for lines to show up. 

"Give it a minute, Lo. Come sit down" Lana said, patting the bed next to her. Lola frowned, but sat down anyway. 

"I don't want to pry if you're not ready to tell me, but do you know who the father is?" Lana asked, putting a hand on Lola's back. 

Lola glanced quickly at Lana, looked away, then slowly nodded. 

"Marcus Riley. He's on the speech and debate team" she said quietly. 

Lana knew vaguely of him, but not enough to form an opinion about the boy. He was admittedly handsome, but nothing about him really stood out to her. 

"Ah" was all she said, because what was there to say? Besides, Marcus would only be relevant if Lola was indeed pregnant. 

Lana glanced across the room at the pregnancy test. It was probably ready to read by now. 

"Ready?" She asked Lola. 

"No" Lola whimpered. 

"Do you want me to look first?" 

Lola nodded. Lana squeezed her sisters hand, then climbed off the bed. She approached the desk with a pounding heart, picked up the test and read it. 

"Ready to see?" she asked, walking back towards the bed. Lola didn't answer, but leaned towards the little test in her sister's hand. Lana flipped it around for Lola to read. 

There was a pause, and then a deep breath. 

"Well, that's that. I'm having a baby" 

Lana set the test back on the desk and pulled Lola into her arms. Another round of sobs came, and once again, Lana let her cry it out. 

"I can't believe this is happening to me" Lola whispered into her twin's shoulder. 

"Me neither" she replied honestly. 


	2. Chapter 2

Under Lana's suggestion, Lola decided to sleep on the situation. It was hard falling asleep with the impending thought of actually having a baby. Her entire life would be ruined. How was she supposed to tell her parents? And telling her siblings could arguably be worse. Then there was the matter of her academics. She'd been fairly good at keeping up with school, but having a baby was a whole new issue that she never thought she'd have to worry about. It was overwhelming to think about, and Lola struggled to get herself to fall asleep. Eventually, exhaustion won her over and she slept until her alarm clock woke her. 

She considered pretending to be sick, but couldn't bring herself to do it. So she mindlessly went through her morning routine, and within an hour she was pulling out of the driveway with her sisters. Lana sent her a few worried glances, but didn't say anything in front of the other siblings. It wasn't until Lily had been dropped off at the elementary school and the two were walking towards the entrance of the high school behind Lucy and Lisa. Lana pulled Lola aside, waiting until the two were a safe distance away from their sisters before speaking. 

"How are you feeling, Lols?" 

Lola gave a defeated shrug, not knowing what to say. 

Lana frowned. 

"Are you sure you want to go to school today? I'll drive you home if you want" she offered, pointing a finger towards the van sitting in the parking lot behind them. 

"No, I can't just ignore my responsibilities. Besides, you're not licensed" Lola argued. 

Lana shrugged. 

"Your call. Just text me if you need anything, alright?" 

She agreed, and the two parted to attend their own classes. Lola tried to keep herself focused enough to get through the day. It served as a decent distraction until her Chemistry class, which she happened to have with Marcus. She did her best not to make eye contact and distracted herself by working on her unit conversions. By the end of the day she was beat. 

Lola spent the afternoon in Lana's room, staring at the faded pink paint on the walls from when they had shared the room. Lola was always surprised that Lana never bothered to repaint, but could justify it by reasoning that she herself had never gotten rid of the purple walls that Luna and Luan had once chosen all those years ago.

"When are you going to tell Marcus?" Lana asked quietly, breaking Lola's train of thought. Lola was lying down on her sister's bed while Lana was sitting at her desk, feeding a bug to her lizard. Lana's reptile collection had become smaller as the creatures became old and died. She still had one lizard, called Antonio, that she had convinced their parents to let her keep. 

"I, well... I don't know. I haven't thought about it" she said. 

Lana dropped another bug into the tank, making Lola squirm. 

"You are going to tell him, right?" 

"Maybe? I don't know. He's a alright, he's just kinda... noncommittal. I don't think he'll handle this very well" Lola sighed, trying to imagine that conversation going down in a way without Marcus straight up ditching her. 

"I think you should tell him. On your own time, of course. The dude should know he's going to be a father, don't you think?" 

Lana had a point. Even if Marcus wasn't a part of the actual pregnancy, he has the right to know. 

"Yeah, I suppose. Although he's not the one I'm worried about telling" she said. 

"Mom and Dad?" 

"Yeah. Plus nine other siblings"

Lana nodded, imagining their reactions to Lola's news. Some of them were fairly understanding, but others were more likely to cause trouble. She could just picture Lynn hearing of it. If she was looking for a fight that day, man would Marcus be getting one. Not so great for Lola. 

"Maybe just pick the easiest and work your way up" Lana suggested. 

"Who do you think's the easiest?" 

"Luna, maybe? Her, or maybe Leni or Lucy" 

The thought of telling Lucy terrified her. Not because she thought she would be angry or judgemental, but only because her and Lucy were close. Lucy was a wonderful big sister, especially after all the other older siblings had moved away, so there was that impending desire to impress her.

"I'll start with Luna. She's pretty understanding" 

\---

Luna Loud was an unpredictable woman. One night she'd be sleeping comfortably in her apartment in Hazeltucky, and the next she'd be across the county playing at clubs. It was a dream come true for her, as she was never one to be satisfied with routine. The lifestyle was nice: doing what she loved without being far from her hometown and her family. Even if she never really "settled down", she managed a respectable functionality. 

This afternoon, however, she was in her own apartment plucking at her unplugged guitar (after receiving several noise complaints from her neighbors). Halfway through sight reading a piece of music she had found online, her phone started buzzing. Expecting it to be a club or event looking to book her for entertainment, she immediately picked it up and held it to her face. The call wasn't from a random Michigan number, but instead from Lola. She gave a curious hum and accepted Lola's call. 

"What's up, Doc?" she greeted excitedly. It had been a while since she'd heard from Lola, or any of her family really. Guiltily, she made a mental note to visit her parents back home. 

"Hey Luna" 

Lola's usual energy was absent, and Luna's heart began thumping, expecting her younger sister to deliver bad news. 

"Everything alright back in the ol' RW?" she asked nervously. 

She could hear Lola shuffling around on the other side. 

"Yeah, everything's great. I, uh, just wanted to know if you want to have dinner with me tonight?" 

"Of course, Sis. I miss you like hell. What's the occasion?" Luna asked, setting her guitar down on the carpet. 

"Um, I just need some sisterly advice" 

"No problemo. Just text me the time and place and I'll be there" 

When she got off the phone, Luna picked her guitar back up. Though she didn't ask, she was surprised that Lola had reached out to her of all her siblings. All of the Louds lived fairly close, and surely Lola was closer to the sisters who still lived at home. Luna figured she had her reasoning and didn't dwell on it, returning to picking at her instrument, waiting for Lola's text. 


	3. Chapter 3

Lola had told Luna told meet her at a little Italian place on the newer side of Royal Woods. It was somewhere she could get away with dressing fairly casually, as she didn't have the energy to fix herself up for the occasion. Not that Luna would care, and probably wouldn't notice.

Lana had offered to skip her mechanics club gathering to go with her, but Lola declined, feeling like she needed to do it herself. When Luna was sitting in the booth across the table waiting for her to speak, she almost regretted not bringing her twin along. But she breathed slowly and looked up at her older sister.

"Everything alright, Lols?"

Lola looked down at the checkered table cloth, running her finger down her water glass, collecting the condensation. Anything to avoid looking Luna in the eyes.

"I have something to tell you" she said quietly.

Luna leaned forward, a concerned frown on her face.

"Sure, dude"

"I'm... I'm pregnant" she practically whispered.

Luna's eyebrows shot up, but if she had an impulsive comment, she bit it back. Lola's eyes fell down in shame.

"Congrats, sis!" Luna said cheerfully, reaching across the table and grabbing her sister's hand.

"It's not really something I'm celebrating" Lola said flatly, but feeling grateful that Luna hadn't reacted nearly as bad as Lana. Not that Lola blamed Lana, of course.

"Maybe you should," Luna suggested, giving Lola's hand a squeeze, "find the silver lining"

Lola shook her head.

"There is no silver lining, Luna. This is actually going to ruin my life. I don't know what to do"

Luna studied her younger sister. It wasn't like Lola to sound so helpless; the girl had more confidence than all her siblings combined.

"I don't know either dude. Do the rents know?"

Lola shook her head sadly.

"Only you and Lana do. I don't know how to tell them all" she muttered.

Luna frowned.

"Yeah, it's a tough thing. But you know that none of us would treat you any differently. We're all here for you Lols"

"Thanks, Luna" she hummed.

They spent the meal catching up. Luna made a promise to come visit home soon, and Lola assured her that she'd be welcome any time.

When she got home, she went upstairs without saying hello to anyone.

"I'm getting worried about Lola" their dad said to the other four girls, who were lounging on the couch watching The Dream Boat.

"Me too. She hasn't offered to redo my hair once in the last few weeks" Lucy agreed, sparing a glance up the stairs.

Lana scrunched her eyebrows together.

"She's alright, she's just bummed after her team lost their last debate" she lied.

The family accepted the lie and went back to their show. Lana gave a quick goodnight to them before dashing upstairs to Lola's room.

Lola was tucked under her covers with her phone held to her face.

"How'd it go with Luna?" she asked quietly.

Lola clicked her phone off and let it fall onto the mattress.

"Fine. She was really supportive"

"Well that's good!" Lana said optimistically, sitting on the end of Lola's bed.

"I guess. I still have like fifteen other people to tell though. Luna was the easy one" she huffed sadly.

Lana put a steady hand on her sister's calf.

"There are so many people who love you, Lola. It's one of the best things about being in this massive-ass family. There's not a single one of them who won't support you"

Lola lifted her eyes to meet Lana's.

"I know that, but this is so scary. I haven't even told Marcus yet, and I already know it's going to be bad"

"Once you rip the bandaid off, it'll be easier. Have him meet you somewhere quiet, tell him the news, and that can be that. Unless he wants to be involved, that is"

Lola huffed and sat up to face her sister.

"Honestly? I don't know if I want him involved" she confessed guiltily.

"Why not?"

"Because he's immature, and kind of a player. I don't want to have to put up with that while trying to go through a pregnancy!"

Lana considered this. She saw where Lola was coming from. From what little she knew about Marcus, she couldn't imagine him making a great father. But she stood by the belief that he deserved to have a part in this if he wanted to.

"I get that, Lo, I really do. But he's still your baby's dad, and if he wants to be a part of its life, he deserves to be, don't ya think?"

Lola shrugged.

"I guess. It would just be so much harder to deal with him during this whole thing. I'm so afraid to talk to him about it, I don't know what I'm going to do if he wants to go through this with me" she sighed, her eyes becoming watery with tears.

An idea came to Lana. She didn't love it, and didn't think it was right. But if it could ease Lola's burden, it might be worth it.

"What if I talked to Marcus for you?" She suggested quietly.

Lola lifted an eyebrow.

"Like, pretend to be me? I don't think he'd buy that"

"No, no. I'll just be me, but I'll break the news to him. It's kinda cheap, but all this stress isn't good for you or the baby, so maybe I can help"

Lola looked as uncertain as Lana felt.

"I guess. As long as you're nice to him, he didn't do anything wrong" she pleaded, and Lana agreed. She could do that for her sister.

"And I know it's not something you want to hear, but you need to tell Mom and Dad soon. They can help you set up doctor's appointments and stuff"

Lola nodded sadly.

"I know, you're right. But I don't know how they're going to react. They're not going to love that their third youngest kid is the first to become a parent"

"No, they definitely won't. But they love _you,_ so they'll help you" she assured her.

Lola accepted quietly. Lana was right. Her parents might be mad, definitely disappointed, but there was no way they'd stop loving Lola because of it. They'd help her through this, just like Lana has.

"Yeah. I'll tell them this weekend, I guess. But," she took a breath, "I think I'm going to talk to Lucy first"

Lana nodded.

"I think that's a good idea"

\---

The next day at school, Lana went to search out Marcus.

Lola had stayed home, after getting sick early that morning. Whether it was morning sickness or nerves, Lana couldn't tell, but either way it was best for her to stay home and rest.

Lana skipped her auto club meeting to spend her lunch talking to Marcus. She recognized that this was a big deal, so she intended to take him off campus for lunch while she gave him the news of his fatherhood.

She found Marcus as he was coming out of the band room, carrying a trumpet case. She gave a slight wave, to indicate that she wanted to talk. His eyebrows scrunched as he looked her up and down.

"Lola?"

"Lana, actually" she corrected.

"Oh right, the twin. Uhm, can I help you?" He asked, looking uncomfortable. Lana guessed that maybe things between him and Lola were awkward at the moment. The upcoming conversation certainly wouldn't help.

"Do you maybe wanna get lunch with me?" She offered.

Marcus's eyebrows scrunched up again.

"Oh, I don't know, me and your sister..."

"Oh, no, not like that," she said, waving her hands in front of her, almost too wildly, "I just have something to talk to you about"

"Uh, then sure. Do you want me to drive?"

"Yes please" she replied, grateful that she didn't have to ask.

Marcus had a nice car, and he kept it very clean. Lana wanted to ask him about the details of the engine and all its moving parts, but that's not why she was there. She was there for Lola.

"Where is it you want to go?" He asked. He seemed tense, but he wasn't being outright unfriendly.

"Is Burpin' Burger alright? I'll pay" she said, pulling a debit card out of her cargo pants pocket. When Marcus agreed, she slid it back into her pocket, and realised she was still carrying her screwdriver.

They rode the rest of the way in silence. There wasn't much to talk about, and Lana thought it'd be better to drop the bomb after they had settled down to eat.

Instead of eating at one of the booths inside, Lana insisted they eat at one of the outside tables. Other kids from school had come to The Burpin' Burger for lunch, and the conversation they were about to have was a private matter.

"So what do you need to talk to me about so badly?" Marcus asked flatly. Lana resisted the urge to curl her lip and spit a string of curses back at him.

She took a breath and tried to think of the most mature way of saying it.

"Listen, I'm actually here of Lola's behalf" she began. Her meal was still untouched; she wasn't hungry.

Marcus raised an eyebrow. Lana couldn't tell if he knew where she was going with this.

"She wanted to be the one to tell you this, but honestly she's not doing too well today, so I'm helping her out" she continued.

Marcus didn't say anything. He was waiting for her to finish.

"But, uh, what I'm saying is that Lola is pregnant" she said so quietly that at first she was worried that Marcus didn't hear her.

It was seconds later that his eyes narrowed and his jaw shifted in what looked like irritation.

"What?"

"She took a test, a pregnancy test, last week. And it came back positive"

Marcus pursed his lips, and Lana was waiting for the reaction. He might start shouting at her, call her a liar. He might even start crying; which Lana was very sure she couldn't handle. But instead, his eyebrows dropped low over his scowl.

"That slut. It figures" he hissed, and Lana recoiled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked, immediately jumping to the defense of her sister.

Marcus sniffed arrogantly, and Lana balled her fists underneath the table.

"I hate to say it because she's your sister, but that's just the kind of thing she would do. Get pregnant for attention"

Lana seethed and scrunched her eyebrows together.

"What? It's not like she did it on purpose, you little..."

She cut herself off before she could escalate too far. If she lost control of herself for even a second, she would knock the daylight right out of the guy. But she kept her fists to her sides, though they were turning white from tension.

"Really? You don't think she'd get herself pregnant just so she could be the new big thing in Royal Woods? She's an attention whore" he scoffed, as if he were just talking about some obnoxious celebrity.

Lana had nothing to gain from picking a fight with Marcus Riley. The damage had been done and she had told him about the situation. There was nothing to do but let it go and return to her sister's side. But she argued anyway.

"Okay smartass, first of all, she didn't 'get herself pregnant'. You had just as much to do with it as she did, so you don't get to act all high and might. And also, she's been miserable over this, so if you think she did it on purpose you're out of your damn mind"

Marcus pursed his lips, but he didn't jump back at her. He just said "Whatever, I'm done talking about this", and got up from the table. Lana snatched her untouched bag of food and followed him with a huff.

The drive back to school was silent, but filled with white hot anger. If Marcus had anything more to say about the matter, Lana didn't even want to hear it. Lola didn't need that asshole anywhere near her. Regardless, Lana figured she'd soften the blow a bit when she would retell the story to her sister. She could just tell Lola that Marcus wasn't interested in being involved with the pregnancy, and certainly Lola wouldn't be devastated. She _had_ stated that she didn't want Marcus involved anyway.

Marcus parked his truck in the same spot he had been in that morning, and turned off the engine. Immediately, he stepped out of the truck and slammed the door unnecessarily hard. Lana followed, still livid from his comments about Lola. As she was hopping out of the truck, she felt something in her pocket stab into her thigh. She pulled out her screwdriver and spun it in her hand once before digging it into the side of Marcus's truck.


End file.
